With the release of the biopic “Michael,” directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Jafar Jackson, the iconic music superstar Michael Jackson is once again being celebrated by audiences around the world. The “King of Pop,” who changed the face of music history with 500 million albums sold, once had a net worth of more than $200 million ($500 million adjusted for today’s inflation). Yet one week before his untimely death in June 2009, there was still a spiritual void he was searching to fill.
Jackson met with gospel music pioneers Andraé and Sandra Crouch at his home while they worked on choir parts for upcoming songs. That’s when the singer — raised as a devout Jehovah’s Witness — asked about anointed music.
“(Michael said), ‘When I see you on TV and you are singing and your hands are up in the air, is that called the anointing?’,” Andrae recalled. “I said where did you hear that word? He said he didn’t know but when he sees it, it seems like when you do that, the power falls down, he said it’s very powerful. I was wondering where he learned that because I knew he had never been to a Pentecostal church.” (Root Magazine)
While the Crouches’ choir delivered powerful backing vocals on Jackson hits such as “Will You Be There,” “Man in the Mirror,” and “Keep the Faith,” his connection with Sandra went all the way back to the Jackson 5’s “ABC” in 1970, on which she played percussion. Bil Carpenter, Sandra’s friend and publicist, recalled their deep mutual admiration.
“Michael trusted them to give him the full, anthemic sound that encircled many of his songs and they were always available to support him because they always knew it was going to be a strong production,” Carpenter said. “MJ’s creative ideas and the Crouches’ ability to execute intricate choir sounds were a perfect musical combination!”
Elsewhere in the interview, Andraé recalled praying with Jackson. Many early reports claimed the siblings led Michael in accepting Jesus into his heart.
“We talked for many hours and my sister Sandra said, ‘Michael, we feel like you are our son’ and he said that he felt the same way so Sandra asked if we could pray for him and he said yes,” Andraé said. “We all got in a circle and began praying and he squeezed my hand so tight that it was hurting. We began praying and we said, ‘Lord, we want you to change Michael’s life’ and he prayed everything that we said. I know that he accepted the Lord.”
Soon after reports of his conversion spread, the Crouches pushed back against “erroneously reporting that we met our dear friend Michael Jackson several weeks prior to his death so he could accept Christ.” They did confirm the conversation about the anointing, along with the praying and singing together. Could it be that their clarification simply clarified the original purpose of the meeting — working on songs — while a genuine conversion still occurred?
In a June 2025 interview on the radio show The Breakfast Club, producer Rodney Jerkins may have provided the clearest answer.
“I got to [Michael Jackson’s] funeral, and Sandra Crouch and Seth Riggs, his vocal coach, says ‘Michael received Christ two weeks ago,’ he had us pray with him, he did the sinner’s prayer,” Jerkins recalled.
As questions and intrigue continue to swirl around the star — who died before launching the comeback shows he believed would redefine his legacy — the man who captured the attention of the entire globe seemed to be on a final quest for something he had not yet acquired. Thankfully, the Crouches were there ready to give the answer.
Watch the 1988 GRAMMY Award performance of “The Man in the Mirror” featuring Michael Jackson and the Andrae Crouch Choir.
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